Generally, laser printers and other electrophotographic image-forming devices include a developing roller for carrying toner, and a toner box accommodating toner to be supplied to the developing roller. As an example of this laser printer, Japanese unexamined patent application publication No. HEI-10-78697 discloses an image-forming device including a photosensitive member, and image-forming member provided around this photosensitive member for executing sequential steps of charging, exposing, and developing as the photosensitive member rotates.
In the image-forming device disclosed in Japanese unexamined patent application publication No. HEI-10-78697, a toner cartridge for replenishing toner in a developing device is replaceably mounted on a casing of the developing device. When replacing the toner cartridge, the operator opens a front cover of the image-forming device and removes the existing toner cartridge from the developing device.
Since the toner cartridge is mounted on and removed from the casing of the developing device rather than the body of the image-forming device, it is possible that the positioning of the toner cartridge relative to the body of the image-forming device will be less accurate. If the toner cartridge is disposed at a position in the body of the image-forming device deviating from its proper position, there may be a decline in operability for replacing the toner cartridge.
Similarly, if the developing device is made replaceable as with the toner cartridge, the same problems may occur regarding operability or ease of replacing the developing device.
Further, in the image-forming device of disclosed in Japanese unexamined patent application publication No. HEI-7-199617, a toner cartridge is mounted on a casing of the developing device that accommodates a developing roller. The toner cartridge includes one agitator for agitating the toner therein. When the developing device is communicated within the toner cartridge, the toner accommodated in the toner cartridge is supplied to the developing roller with agitation of the toner.
Since the image-forming device includes just one agitator, it is possible that the toner will be less agitation in the image-forming device described above.